What's going on this week

Hello campers, welcome back to another installment of Burkina Vice. Just like the TV show,Miami Vice, except no water. Yep, just like it........Anyhoo, just dropping another line to let you guys in on another exciting week in BFA. I in town again for a meeting for the Volunteer Advisory Committee, of which I'm a member. I was voted by my peers to represent our class in issues dealing with our administration in hopes of improving relations and/or general morale. "Why?" do you ask, that we have this committee? Well, During my short tenure, the working relationship between the general volunteer and the bureau has been tenuous. At times sparking intense debate, feelings of distrust, and overall poor morale, thus high rate of ET's(early terminations). The committee was formed a viable avenue of communication between the offices and the volunteer population in the hopes of preventing the above in the future. The meetings that just occured seemed productive and attitudes seemed to be improving. Hopefully, this will continue in following meetings that occur every quarter. Things that have improved lately have mostly dealt with our transit house/hostel that volunteers stay at when they are in Ouaga for whatever reason and time. Thankfully, there's a new batch of motivated volunteers that are in charge of orginization of the different common areas, such as the kitchen, library, and storage. The bureau also just installed, at our request, cieling fans and screens to keep out bugs from the house. It doesn't have AC, but the additional fans have made staying there extremely more comfortable. We're also trying to get a TV in the house, cause to help pass our time we love movies so why not a tv? Currently the trend has been to use whoever's laptop happened to be at the disposal or just listen to music. Quite a few volunteers have a somewhat recent movies in thier collections. Little things like that help make our world go around a little better. Anyhoo pretty exciting, I know. Just like Miami Vice. :-)

For Dave, I JUST got you package today and the "Listerine" bottle of "Mouth Wash" is incredible and hilarious. I've shown it to some other volunteers who have laughed out loud at it's impressive labeling and packaging. It is much appreciated along with all the other little goodies you packed so generously also. The Fudge Chocolate Pop Tarts are quite tasty as I'm in the midst of eating one as i type. Yum Yum. Thank you very much Dave and Elena, not just for the items but the real thought you put into it. Mercy Buckets

Okay, what else is going on, ummm, I'm still up in the air about my house and if my heatlh committee balks at fixing or finding my a new house then they'll lose me as a volunteer. I'll have to move to an adjacent village and finish my tenure out in a village about 25 K away. I don't think that will happen, but it may. Whether it does or not, I'll let you guys know too.

My counterpart, the women in the photo with me from the bike-a-thon story, who is awesome, my be getting transfered to a new village. Which would make my life in my current village a little less pleasant. I will be bummed if she leaves, she has offered some really sound advice since I've been here and I know I can count here as a real friend and not one to see what money or present she can get out of our relationship. Unfortunately, she's the only one in village I can say that for sure.
So that issue isn't so good right now.

Good things that ARE going on have been doing with sensibilizations. I've been pretty buzy these last two weeks setting up and doing sensisiblizations with my village on my Moringa trees, Malaria, Vaccinations, and Pre-natal Consultations. I've got some more to do for this week and then next week I have to come back to ouaga and get our annual medical check ups. So the September has passed by eventfully enough where as October should be interesting to.

We have been toasting each other this last week quite a lot because our class now has less than a year left in country. Sounds terrible to keep track of the days like this but, knowing we have less than a year left is like a big hill we just climbed and now we're looking down the other side. Time to take a big breath and make the most out of this ride down.

I have plans already in motion for more stuff onAIDS and hopefully I get some practice micro-credit groups set up with some of the students in the high school here. I’d also like to start something like that with some of the surrounding villages, but it depends if I’ll actually be here to do it.

For Thanksgiving this year, I probably head to another volunteers village and celebrate turkey there. For Xmas there’s a contingent that’s planning a trip to Ghana of which I hope to go along. Should be fun.

Well, that's it for now, I'll be in town next week to write more on Aminata's forced marriage that I wrote about a month ago. Hope you all are doing well and are safe. Take care and miss you a bunch.
L

Crumble Crumble

Another shot of the garden. Before this wall fell and after the 1st one fell. I was gardening underneath that section of wall knowing it's unstable. It's like gardening with adrenaline and paranoia. Good times.
Nice little instant backdoor patio. Losing the watermelon bummed me the most.
This is after most of the debris was moved from inside of my house to recover everything that had been covered in rock.

Things that go boom

Hey guys, I'm back with another installation of my ever exciting life in Burkina. For those who are wondering why there haven't been that many updates recently, it's because I haven't been writing letters like I used to. Or maybe I should rephrase that. I haven't been finishing letters like I used to. I have currently about 5 letters that I've started and feel unable to finish coherently. I don't know why but my thought pattern during writing these letters has been scattered and seemingly non-sensical and thus, a page or two of writing has been left with no resolute ending. Sorry, to say the least, and maybe it just shows the lack of events going on in my little part of the world.
So, why am I writing now? Well, some stuff has happened in the last couple weeks I figured you guys might find it interesting.
A few of you already knew of some problems going on with my house. The rainy season has been going on for the last couple months and has caused some damaged to my home due to the placement of my house on the hillside. When it rains, and it usually downpours, much of the rain that drains down the hill passes right next to my house. Carrying away much dirt in the process and destabilizing the foundation of my house. My house is made of dirt bricks covered by a thin layer of cement. Well, when the house is stable this set up works fine for about 5-10 years. When the foundation becomes unstable, as ii is my case, the walls and floors tend to crack and split.
The first major wall crack occurred about 6 weekes ago, large enough to see my garden from indoors(not good). Neighbors gave me the advice to dig a trench to divert the water around my house to keep it from destablizing the house any further. Which I did, but at that point it was too little late. Crack in my house continued to get larger and more severe. One wall in which the cement floor cracked so much there was about a 2 inch gap running from one side of the house to another.
My next step was to go to the Health committee(they're held responsible for my lodging) to get help repairing my house. A member was assigned and sent to look and help out if he could. That was a Saturday.
Sunday, the next morning he came with a pick, a shovel and a wagon full of rocks to help restabilize the foundation. His plan was to put bracers on the wall that pulling away from the house, dig a trench, fill it with cement and rocks at the base of the wall to strengthen the support of the wall and foundation. Great idea, right? Well, what he didn't do was put the supports in before he started digging, essentially taking away the last bit of glue that was keeping the wall standing and connected to the house.
2 seconds after finishing the trench on one side of the house and stepping out to get rocks to replace the dirt, the wall of my house fell in and destroyed everything that happened to be underneath. My bed, my bike and a table. All in all, not very much, considering everything else I had in that room, but was luckily on the other side of the room,(i.e. like my ipod, THAT would have been tragic for me, Love my music). The moment after the collapse, my first word was "HOOOLYSHIIT", then thinking of what just was destroyed, I then said, "FUCCCK". My unfortunately helpful neighbor, looked at me and responded in kind, awestruck, "Oui, Fuuk".
Within minutes about ten people were over helping remove rocks and dirt from my home. A generous gesture that was incredibly helpful, but however nerve racking, now that I had several people in my private domain, with everything out to be seen.
Also, since I'm the Nasara(whitey) the articles in my house are of keen interest to the villagers. They are avidly curious about what a nasara could have in her house. Anyway, suddenly there was about 10 kids helping and poking about in my stuff. I quickly gathered up the essentially items I didn't want to be missing later and started putting everything in the other still existant room of my house.
Within the hour the Health Committee found me another house to stay in and to transfer my belongings. Deeming my house to be unsafe, which it now is. The next portion of the day was packing, or tossing, everything i owned into a wagon and halling it over to the other house to get resituated. It took 5 wagon loads, (the wagons are about 4 by 5 feet wide).
The good news right now, is that I'm in another more stable house and that all my stuff was recovered. Got a new bike from peacecorps and a visit from my supervisor to see the damage done.
The bad news is I need to move again by the end of October, because my current house is for someone else. The Health Committee can't afford to pay my rent to continue stay in another house and the old house is unrepairable and needs to be completely rebuilt in order to be livable. Peacecorps won't pay for the construction for a new home, so the Health committee is in a tight spot. What will happen is hard to say right now. After October, I'm expecting to be in another house, where and what village, who knows.
Further destruction occured about a week later, when a second wall, already destablized by the first wall falling and continued rain, fell outwards and landing into the middle of my garden, effectively taking out most of my watermelon, beans, gumbo, and tomatoe plants. Good Times.
So, how are things other wise. I'm still working and will soon get buzier as the rainy season ends and people have time to do other activities. My Moringa trees, which are still in the same courtyard/nursery are growing nicely. I'm continuing with women groups and cotton groups for sensibilizing on moringa tree use.
Currently, my working relationship with my nurse has improved slightly(just) and the President of the health committee is still a jerk. Next couple weeks however, I have a ton of sensibilization scheduled within my village and hopefuly those will go well. They'll be on Vaccinations, Malaria, Moringa, Pre-natal Consultations and stuff like that. General reminders mostly.
That's it for now,
Next post I'll show pics of the damage. later gators

OH, Dave, nope still haven't gotten your package, sometimes it takes a month or two. Thanks so much for the thought!

Letter from 8-12-06

Dear Deb and Kurt
I’m back in village once again, after all too quick one night sojourn on Ouaga. A necessary trip despite its shortness.

I usually to watch whatever horrible film is being shown near my boutique. It’s a TV running off batteries that plays whatever mindless action film the proprieters can find. Charging about 10 cents a person. Tonight’s film was to be Godzilla, the film made in the 90’s. I was somewhat hoping it would have been the original, but a rain started and made that hope moot.

My current frame of mind is good despite some friction with my chief nurse. I mean, despite being forced to work with an asshole, my life in village is good. Sometimes I do have to pinch my self to remind myself where I am, and what I’m doing. I feel the village and my house finally becoming a home despite all of it’s shortcomings. Blessedly the last couple of weeks have cooled off during the rains and my attitude has probably improved because of it also.

Due to the seasons constant threat of rain, the constant shifting and build up of clouds creating tree like fortresses in the sky, it allows for beautiful and constantly changing sunsets. Ambient lighting of pinks and purples brighten my books as I strain to read before the final sunset.

This time the rain came on gradually in a nice sort of introductory way. More often the bending if trees from winds and a sharp temperature change is the brief acknowledgement of an impending onslaught. I believe I appreciate the gentler introduction now that I’ve made it’s acquaintance here. It’s reminiscent of home and it’s constant rhythm isn’t so harsh on my tin roof.

Gentle rains are nice on a tin roof. The can lull you to sleep. Storms are staccato against my thin ceiling verifying if my cracks are tight and my walls are sturdy. Unfortunately, they are neither and I believe a house like mine may last another 2 years at the most with out some major reconstruction. I like my home. It’s the right size for me and it’s courtyard is my sanctuary.

Ill leave you that and hope this letter found you both well. Take care and be safe.
Always,
Laura